British Academy Film Awards — 2 wins, 1 nominationAcademy Awards — 1 nominationKids' Choice Award — 1 nominationSaturn Award — 1 nominationAll 2 wins · 4 nominations on record
British Academy Film Awards: Best Special Visual Effects
Scholarship
Named in the title of 1 peer-reviewed work
Examples
Sources: Wikidata · OpenAlex · Library of Congress. The record of the motion picture, not an assessment of this cell.
FILM NOTES
Back to the Future Part II arrived from Universal Pictures in 1989, the immediate sequel to one of the defining blockbusters of the decade. Directed by Robert Zemeckis and again starring Michael J. Fox and Christopher Lloyd, it pushed the franchise into 2015 and an alternate 1985, expanding the time travel premise into darker, more complex territory. It remains a touchstone of late-eighties studio filmmaking, prized for its ambition and its place in a trilogy that shaped popular culture well beyond its era.
This cell centers on Marty McFly, the character audiences followed across three films as reluctant time traveler and reactive hero. Marty is the emotional anchor of the series, the everyman thrown into escalating chaos, and material bearing his likeness is a natural focal point for collectors building out a trilogy set. A single 35mm frame like this one offers a tangible link to the reel itself, a physical artifact rather than a reproduction, tied directly to the character who carries the entire story forward.
Authentication Findings8 checks
Consistent with a 35mm theatrical color release print of Back to the Future Part II.
Gauge
35mm, confirmed by four perforations per frame on both edges; the strip holds three frames.
Perforations
Four per frame on both edges, evenly spaced; punched edges appear clean with no torn or missing perforations visible.
Soundtrack
A variable-area optical track is visible running along one edge beside the picture area, appearing as a dual-band analog optical track.
Edge print
The text 'SAFETY' is legible along the top edge, reading in mirror-reversed orientation; no key numbers or additional codes are legible in this capture.
Base & colour
The base shows a slight warm-neutral tint consistent with color print stock; the dye image appears well-saturated with no obvious fading or red shift.
Projection history
Light vertical scratching is visible across the frame area, consistent with a print that has passed through a projector gate.
Picture
Positive color image; all three frames appear to be consecutive frames from a single continuous shot, and the subject matter is consistent with a theatrical release print of Back to the Future Part II.
Era check
The dual variable-area optical soundtrack, color print stock with SAFETY base designation, and perforation layout are all consistent with a 1989-era theatrical release print.
Read from the original intake capture shown below. Observations only — film is authenticated, not graded.
This original motion picture film element has been examined and authenticated by Crown Grading in partnership with National Film Vault, and encapsulated for archival preservation.
Why so little survivesRelease prints were leased to theaters, not sold. When the run ended they went back to the distributor to be destroyed, and most were. What collectors hold today came from the prints that escaped that order, and no new 35mm prints of these films are being struck.
CROWN SERIAL 000064224
Original Film CaptureAs received
Photographed on the light panel at intake, before encapsulation — tap to open full size
Tap to enlarge
